** FILE ** In this Oct. 27, 2008, file photo, Baseball commissioner Bud Selig speaks to reporters at a news conference after Game 5 of the baseball World Series between the Tampa Bay Rays and Philadelphia Phillies in Philadelphia. Selig's compensation was listed at $17,470,491 for the 12 months that ended Oct. 31, 2007, making his compensation higher than all but three of his sport's players in 2007. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

Major League Baseball officials announced Monday they've formed a committee to study ballpark options for the Oakland Athletics, with no mention of San Jose - the destination preferred by one of the team's owners.

Commissioner Bud Selig said in a statement that he met Saturday with the team's owners and decided to appoint a committee to "thoroughly analyze all of the ballpark proposals that have been made to date, the current situation in Oakland and the prospects of obtaining a ballpark in any of the communities located in Oakland's territory."

David Chai, Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums' chief of staff, took an optimistic read of the tea leaves: "It's a positive step moving forward," he said. "It's in the city's overall best interest to keep the A's in Oakland. The team's ownership must be committed to a seriousness of purpose ... and it's clear MLB is committed to all options, including Oakland."

MLB spokesman Richard Levin declined to elaborate on Selig's statement other than to say the three-member committee had "worked extensively" in ballpark acquisition.

The committee members are panel chairman Bob Starkey, a stadium expert and financial consultant for MLB; Corey Busch, a former executive for the Giants under the team's previous ownership; and Irwin Raij, a lawyer with Foley and Lardner who was closely involved with Washington and Miami ballpark proposals.

Levin said he didn't know when the panel would make its recommendations. Lew Wolff, co-owner of the A's, was in Arizona for spring training on Monday and was unavailable for comment, a spokeswoman said.

Last week, Wolff told a group of reporters his preference was San Jose. "We are really saying that we'd love to stay in Northern California, and go to San Jose," he said on Thursday. Wolff added that the odds looked slim for relocating the team in Alameda and Contra Costa counties, although he had not ruled out looking at potential sites in Oakland.

The club has three one-year options it can exercise in Oakland beyond 2010, when its lease expires. Wolff last month backed out of a plan to move the team to Fremont in the face of stiff community opposition.

A move to San Jose would require an agreement with the Giants, who have territorial rights to that market, as well as the blessings of MLB.

"Lew Wolff and the Oakland ownership group and management have worked very hard to obtain a facility that will allow them to compete into the 21st century," Selig said in his statement. "The time has come for a thorough analysis of why a stadium deal has not been reached. The A's cannot and will not continue indefinitely in their current situation."

Chai said he hoped Cisco and Comcast's commitment to help finance the construction of a new stadium in Fremont would also extend to Oakland, buoying the city's hopes of keeping the team in their home since 1967.

San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed said the new MLB committee is good news and that "anyone who takes an objective look at this will put San Jose on their list."